Thanking Redders: Leeds fans show their support

With the possibility Leeds United’s game against Rotherham United tomorrow will be Neil Redfearn’s last, the Leeds United Supporters’ Trust have launched a campaign for fans to send messages of thanks to a man who has become one of the most popular head coaches/managers in the club’s recent history.

Comments tagged with #ThanksRedders on social media and left beneath a post on the Trust’s website are being forwarded to Neil Redfearn by the fans’ group. So far, the initiative has resulted in a large outpouring of support for Redfearn, a very small selection of which is featured below.

There’s been no word from Massimo Cellino on the situation as yet, but his Football League ban ends on Sunday and it’s expected a decision will come soon after. Neil Redfearn meanwhile has stated he’d like to finish the job he’s started but but would have certain (and understandable) conditions that need to be met – one of which is the reinstatement of Assistant Head Coach, Steve Thompson, who was suspended for reasons the club still hasn’t properly explained.

Lucy Ward, who works alongside Neil Redfearn at the club and is also in a relationship with the Leeds United boss, tweeted last night to say Neil was humbled by the messages and wanted to thank the Leeds United fans for their support.

140 characters is not enough to show how much I want Neil Redfearn and his team together at the start of next season. #thanksredders

Star man and the only one worth his salt. I wish to fuck that the others would go!

Tare

Redder is the TOP MAN no reasoning here. Tare

Irving08

Agree with the renewal of Redfearn’s contract – he need an extended opportunity to show us that he can meet a ‘positive’ target (say, a play off position) and not just avoid relegation. But I think a line has to be drawn under the Thompson affair and the club, together with Redefearn, needs to appoint a different Assistant Coach. Something rather unpleasant must have been said to cause a gentleman like Salerno to sack Thompson. A graduate of the George Graham School of Defending would be most welcome.

Chareose

Irv…….I think its pretty obvious that Thommo was sacked in order to undermine Redfearns growing prominence at Leeds. The Abuse of Salerno is a smokescreen
Cellino may back track but it will be half hearted and merely an effort to appease the fans

Irving08

No, Chareose it is not obvious at all. Do you really think that Cellino would sacrifice Salerno in order to get rid of Redfearn ? And why should the relative success of Redfearn discomfit him ? Wouldn’t he be delighted with the prospect of having a winning team led by a developing coach ? Personally I prefer to work from the available evidence, which suggests that there was some sort of conflict Salerno and the coaches over the implications of Antenucci’s contract. In addition, there may have built up training ground friction between Thompson and the out-of-favour Italian players. You can see how these things build up, on the training ground, things said to people, little personal slights and so forth – maybe something was whispered in Antenucci’s ear. I don’t know, but neither does anyone else know either, apart from the participants themselves, what exactly went on. What I can say is that I am not prepared to see everything that happens at LUFC as one big conspiracy, of which this is only the most recent episode. So, if Cellino does try to keep Redfearn at the club, I shall not interpret it as a form of crowd appeasement, and indeed would not respect him were he to do so for this reason. Finally, I do not think that turning the question of Redfearn’s future into a ‘who-whom’ situation does him any favours in what is bound to be a period of delicate negotiation with Cellino at which a number of options, including one along MBW’s lines, could be tabled. Apologies for exepecting you to read so much, Chareose. MOT.
part in the crowd hysteria

Thank you Redders… a great job that’s not been easy… but,
I think Mark Warburton should come to Leeds and lead the way forward with your good self working along side him. imo.

Irving08

Having listened carefully to Redders’ interview on Radio Yorkshire, I fear he is making life unnecessarily difficult for himself. First, he hankers after Thompson, whom he unwisely refers to as his ‘mate’, yet says not a word about Salerno, who has also gone. Second, he over-identifies with those of the Academy players that have played this season, whom he calls ‘the bedrock’, thus giving an impression of partiality, let alone unsustainable permanence. (And I say so as an early propagandist for our younger players.) Redders must learn to be more guarded and resist being drawn into counter-productive discussion by the local media. I am genuinely surprised he hasn’t learned the lesson of the equally likeable Brian McDermott.

LeedsLover

People, you need to decide whether you want promotion or Redders.

I appreciate and respect peoples feelings towards him, bottom line though is he isn’t good enough to get us promoted, you want out of the championship or you don’t, you won’t get it both ways, Redders and promotion don’t go together.

Many of you did same for BM, then the results went pear shape and you started to want BM out, same thing will happen next season if Redders is still here.

Stein Øksnes

Well, who do you want, then – who is available for a championship club at an affordable salary, willing to work as head coach instead of manager, accepting that others pick new signings etcetera?

Irving08

Those are good questions Stein. It is not quite true to say however that the head coach had no say in this season’s new signings. If memory serves me correctly, It was Hockaday who wanted Billy Sharp; according to reports, Cellino/Salerno were not keen to have him. Also, while I agree that new signings, or indeed any member of the squad must have the confidence of the Head Coach, this does not exclude – and nor should it, in my view – the Director of Football from playing an active role in player recruitment and retention. It is not currently popular to say so, but I think last summer’s and the Xmas recruitment was quite successful. Without Silvestri – my player of the season – where would we be now ? Berardi – whose talents Redefearn seems to have been slow to recognise – turns out (as some of us perceived early on) to be a very good full back. And Bellusci – seemingly cast in the role of pantomime villain – despite occasional lapses, has brought a class of defending we hadn’t seen for a while at Elland Road. And everyone likes Antenucci. Italian football is a very professional business, highly sophisticated too; something very wrong must have happened at Elland Road, or simply be wrong, for some of these players to have become alienated from the set-up.

Mr. McDermott Sr.

If Larry wants it, pay PNE whatever is needed. Too many times this season we’ve been witness to atrocious football, tactical ineptitude and reluctance/inability to adapt and change. Neil was riding his luck for the best part of the season and this was glaringly obvious when we went on those massive losing streaks and he could offer no solution but post-match sound bites about ‘bad luck’ – rubbish.

A properly run club needs stability – granted that’s not Neils fault but a good manager should have those players thinking of nothing else except what happens on the pitch. I doubt a return to the youth academy would be possible this and I fear we’ve lost an excellent youth coach because of this whole fiasco.

Facts are this squad is stronger than last year and better than the squad Grayson had 2011/2012, Neil should have been able to do more with them. I think Grayson could.